ESO Movie 16: A Giant's Mirror Best Support

The M1 cell is a laser welded structure which supports the primary mirror of the ESO VLT. The cell is equipped with an elaborate system of 150 axial and 72 lateral supports. Steel pipes of various diameters, all filled under vacuum with oil, interconnect the hydraulic pads to form the whiffletree networks supporting in the most accurate way the weight of the primary mirror. The video shows the manufacturing of this most important high-tech component of the VLT, from the initial design phase to the finished system which is a crucial part of the innovative VLT concept.